Post-tonsillectomy and adenotonsillectomy morbidity & complications at District Headquarter Hospital Daggar

Abstract

Background: Tonsillectomy or adenotonsillectomy is one of the commonly performed operations in ENT practice. Morbidity & complications associated with tonsillectomy and adenotonsillectomy include severe otalgia, pyrexia, odynophagia and haemorrhage.

Methods: A prospective study was undertaken from April 1996 to April 2001 to report the experience regarding postoperative morbidity/complications in tonsillectomy and/or adenotonsillectomy. A total of 1500 patients undergoing tonsillectomy or adenotonsillectom for chronic/recurrent tonsillitis or adenotonsillar hypertrophy were included. These patients received antibiotic in the form of amoxycillin and clavulanic acid and non-salicylate analgesics for 7 days postoperatively. 100 patients were lost to follow up.

Results: Seventy percent of patients were female and thirty percent males with maximum number of patients between the age of 11-22 years. Postoperative complications developed in 25 out of 1400 patients, 14 of them developed post-operative bleeding and 9 developed postoperative infection.

Conclusions: It was found that postoperative morbidity/complications were less in this study with regard to secondary haemorrhage, operative site infection, intensity & duration of postoperative pain, postoperative pyrexia and time for return to normal activities.